are utterly shameful and far, far worse** for the world than the entirely economically rational decision not to support an FTT. Hell, if you want to criticise the Cleggalition, there are plenty of wide open targets. Why pick the one thing they are clearly correct about?

* Not reporting, moving of paedophiles to other locations where they would still have ready access to victims, etc, etc.

** Okay, maybe not women priests. Not that there is anything particularly wrong with them (yes, they do tend to be a bunch of screaming mad harridans but that's no different from the blokes) but they've not yet made their mark on the world stage.

Friday, April 27, 2012

Yesterday, stuck in one of the country's marginally less appalling airports, I watched in fascinated horror as a Diamond Jubilee Medal sold, on eBay, for £155. As I type, there is one on "Buy It Now" for £185. Now, this is quite a lot of money for something that is mass produced from base metal (there is no silver in 'nickel silver'!) But, I'm sure, there are a few people who want to large it up over the extra Bank Holiday but without meeting the qualification criteria to get issued one. Their money, their choice, clearly. Although copies are trivially available, from the usual suspects, for a mere £30.

But (and I know it's still their money), people have bid an empty Diamond Jubilee Medal BOX to over £50. Huh? Unless they're hoping to pass a cheap medal copy off as a real one to one of the idiots willing to pay £150 for a real one (which is a s2 Fraud Act 2006 offence, at the very least), I just can't imagine why they are parting with so much dosh.

As a comparison, a Silver Jubilee medal, far fewer of which were produced, is generally available for somewhere in the £120 to £200 range. The cheaper ones tend to be the Canadian version. The common-as-muck* "Battle of Golden Jubilee" gong usually fetches around £40 - £50, with box and the little bit of card from the Mint that sellers usually describe as a "certificate". This is a mere tenner or so more than a copy medal.

Disclaimer - I'm not getting worked up about the medals being flogged on eBay, unlike the Torygraph or the Scum, just incredulous at what some people are willing to pay.

* As in "even I have one".

Update: As of 6th May, there is a medal up for sale for £500 and another for £350. Boxes alone seem to be making less - a mere £21 or so.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Err, no. It's not a "dilemma". Dilemmas have to have (at least) two rational options. If one of them is silly, no matter how unattractive, then it is merely superficial. Next, please.

Oh, sorry, you wanted a little more relevant comment? The fact that you weren't allowed to be sold porn mags (or cigarettes) until you were whatever-age-it-was back in ancient days (16 for the fags) didn't stop teenagers getting hold of them. Magazines and evil-cancer-sticks are easier to control than digital pictures.

You couldn't even attempt it without placing hideous restrictions on those of us who are legally allowed (although uxorially disapproved) to see porn. So just don't.

Friday, April 20, 2012

They are just trying to scupper another person's opportunity for debate, which is very uncivilised and very un-British.

Bit like the fucking BNP, really. Uncivilised and very un-British.

Oh, and Ken?

The far right want to destroy our democracy and stand for the elimination of our basic rights.

Firstly, the BNP are a racist, statist hard-left party. As you should well know. As a racist*, statist hard-left mayoral candidate.

Secondly, nothing the BNP, the EDL or Combat 18 could do, hell even the SWP and the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas and Hezbollah together could do, that would do more to "eliminate our basic rights" than your beloved Labour Party has done. Egregious fuckwit.

To mitigate the imbalance, BERN could be forced to accumulate ever more
euro-denominated Schrodinger assets (maybe worth something, maybe not —
all depends on whether the observer is Italian) onto its own account.

I think the problem is deeper than that - it isn't that PIIGS bonds are Schrodinger assets (there is no quantum superposition state), it's that they seem to be Majorana fermions. If you get lots of them together and they don't move around fast enough, they start mutually annhilating. So if the market becomes illiquid ...

Protect Your Bits

Nothing You Wanted to Know

A classical liberal & modern libertarian, economically laissez faire, and a governmental minimalist. Somewhat surprised to find this puts me way to the right of Chingis Khan.
Really, really pissed off at the endemic stupidity of the British governing cliques. Sometimes lets his potty mouth get the better of him.